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EWAN C BRISCOE
The most precious gift I ever received from taekwondo

Photo by Manfred Moitzi, used under Creative Commons licence.

My mum’s last illness was a terrible time for our family. It was also a time when I was going through serious difficulties in my own life and work. I would visit mum and try to make out that I was fine – but she was my mum. She knew. She’d ask me what was the matter, or if I was in pain but I didn’t want to tell her. In the end, despite what she was going through, typically selfless and thinking about other members of her family and not about herself, she even arranged for me to get counselling! I was beginning to realise just what a strong woman she really was. When her cancer was first diagnosed, she didn’t tell anyone. She wanted to protect us. I felt deep awe when I heard this, and incredibly lucky to have had a role model like her.

I realised what the values and discipline of taekwondo had done for me

She said she was determined to fight the cancer, and she did so, and seemed to be making a good recovery. Then she was told that it had spread and that now she had liver cancer. I asked her again if she wanted to fight. This time she said only, “I’m tired”. We knew that this amazing woman was not going to be with us for much longer.  After my mother died, I grieved deeply. But I had learned by now to contain personal sadness, as my inner discipline and strength increased. I was able to separate my difficult feelings from the work I needed to do, and also be there for other members of my family. And when I realised that, I understood that my martial arts training, with the values I believe in so strongly, had succeeded in doing an amazing thing for me. They had made a bit more like my mum.  

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